Fire crews see £9 million slashed from budget

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service say the 20 per cent cut to their budget has been achieved by changing the way some of its stations are crewed and by refining some of their business processes.

Despite the savings, the fire service has warned of more cuts due to an “even more challenging financial future” and now the service is calling on members of the public to take part in an online survey to determine what services residents want to see safeguarded.

A spokesman for the fire service, said: “To date we have been able to make savings without negatively impacting on the services we deliver.

“Even though we have already achieved this, there is no avoiding the fact that we are entering an even more challenging financial future.

“We know that as a public sector organisation we are going to have to play our part by looking for further efficiencies. We also know that this may mean making some difficult decisions.”

“We want to know whether you think your fire and rescue service provides good value for money.

“Your feedback will help us shape the future of the services we provide. We would like to invite you to get involved in the debate and share your opinions on the value you place on our services and what we should do to protect them.”

In the past 10 years, firefighters in Mid Wales have been called out to more than 6,500 house fires, more than 11,700 road traffic collisions and over 16,600 medical emergencies.